


Trampoline

by mizzmarvel



Category: Baby-Sitters Club - Ann M. Martin
Genre: Gen or Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-22
Updated: 2014-06-22
Packaged: 2018-02-05 16:35:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 946
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1825147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mizzmarvel/pseuds/mizzmarvel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For the first time in all of Byron Pike's ten years, he had the house - sort of - and a friend all to himself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Trampoline

**Author's Note:**

> The boys are only ten in this piece, but don't worry, this is pre-slash at best; nothing really inappropriate. 
> 
> For tarampaiel, originally written March 24, 2006.

When Jeff Schafer came to visit Stoneybrook during summer break, most of the Pike children were laid up with a particularly awful case of the flu. Claire was the one who first brought it home, complaining of a tummy ache on the last day of kindergarten that culminated in her throwing up a large portion of spaghetti and meatballs all over the dinner table, and from there it had spread like wildfire. Within a few days, Mrs. Pike was left with a house full of whining, vomiting children.

The only one unaffected, somehow, was Byron, and reluctantly Mrs. Pike agreed to let Jeff come over and play during the day - she felt bad for having to ignore Byron while caring for the other children, and for basically quarantining him downstairs, but it was just easier that way - on the condition that they stick to the rec room, the kitchen, and outside.

So for the first time in all of Byron Pike's ten years, he had the house - sort of - and a friend all to himself. He felt sort of guilty about it, like he was betraying his brothers, but he forgot to feel that way when Jeff rang the doorbell at eleven, just like he had done every morning for the past few days.

They sat in front of the TV in the rec room for a while, eating cereal (Jeff loudly proclaimed that Cocoa Pebbles were way too sugary, but ate three bowls full) and watching _Reading Rainbow_ ("This is a baby show," Jeff said, so they kept the volume down low and only mouthed the words to the theme song as they watched, attention rapt), but it was too nice a day to stay in for long. They clamored back up the basement stairs as LeVar Burton's voice faded away, and out into the backyard.

It was one of those perfect early summer days, warm and sunny without being humid. Byron blinked at the sudden brightness, looking up at the sun before he could think not to, and sneezed.

"Come on, let's go on the trampoline," Jeff said, heading over to the corner of the yard where it was set up. The trampoline had been a joint birthday present for the triplets, much to their mother's chagrin, and Nicky's, since he kept having unfortunate and not-so-mysterious accidents on it.

Byron hesitated; they really weren't supposed to play on the trampoline unless one of his parents, Mallory, or a baby-sitter was watching them, but Jeff had already climbed on and was giving it a few cautious practice jumps. So Byron scrambled up after him, bouncing awkwardly toward Jeff.

They gathered height gradually, slowly growing more confident. Finally, Byron, who'd had more practice, said, "Watch this," and jumped about a foot into the air, kicking his legs backward as he went.

Jeff grinned and answered, "No, watch _this_ ," and did a mid-air ninja-kick, nearly skittering off the side when he came down for landing.

Soon, they dissolved into giggling, shouting, and frantic jumping, competitive as most boys their age were, arms pumping and waving as they tried to go higher, higher.

"Watch this!"

"Watch this!"

"Watch this!"

"Watch this!"

"Watch this!" Jeff hollered, and actually managed to do a flip.

"Watch this!" Byron cried, and jumped sideways and headfirst, knocking into Jeff.

They collapsed in a heap in the center of the trampoline, laughing hysterically and trying to catch their breath all at once. Eventually, they calmed down, with only an occasional snicker of remembrance, and basked in the competing warmths of the sun and the slick trampoline surface, their tanned legs tangled together companionably.

"When I grow up, I want a trampoline in my backyard," Jeff said after a few long minutes of easy silence, one arm tucked under his head. "Even when I'm married."

"Me too," Byron agreed, and worried vaguely that his faceless future wife would be as anti-trampoline as his mom had been.

"If me and you got married, I bet we'd get a really good one," Jeff went on. " _Really_ good. Bigger than this."

"Boys can't marry boys," Byron said, confused, laughing a little, like it was a joke.

"Sometimes!" Jeff protested.

"Boys marry girls," Byron said firmly. 

Jeff sat up, frowning a little.

"My step-mom's friend Thomas got married to another boy," he said. "At home. We went to their wedding."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Well," Byron said doubtfully, "Maybe they just do that in California." Really, he'd never heard of such a thing.

"Maybe," Jeff agreed, and they both got quiet again.

Byron tried to picture himself as a grown up, jumping on a trampoline with a girl in a wedding dress, but it just didn't work. It was a lot easier to imagine him and Jeff, bouncing and laughing and natural.

"I bet it'd be a lot more fun to marry a boy," Byron said finally, and Jeff grinned.

"Yeah. Well, maybe at least we could marry sisters."

"Yeah! And we could live next door to each other!"

"Or share a house!"

"And we could have a trampoline in the backyard!"

"A big one!"

"The biggest! And I could jump like this," Byron said, bouncing up onto his knees, then to his feet.

Jeff laughed and wriggled away to escape being trampled by Byron's feet. "I can jump higher," he said, standing upright.

"Oh yeah?" Byron challenged, jumping up and down in place, picking up speed.

"Yeah!" and Jeff leaped upwards, bounding around the trampoline in circles. "I can go twice as hiiiigh!" he sang to the tune of the _Reading Rainbow_ theme, and they both started giggling again as they jumped high and higher, trying to reach the sky.


End file.
